Getty Images Sold For $3.3B To Top Management, Carlyle Group

The Carlyle Group LP (Nasdaq: CG), a global asset manager, and Getty Images management said Wednesday they formed a partnership to acquire privately held Getty Images Inc. from Hellman & Friedman for $3.3 billion.

Carlyle, which went public in May, will buy a controlling stake in Getty Images, while Getty Images co-founder and chairman Mark Getty and the Getty family will roll substantially all of their ownership interests into the transaction. Getty Images management, including co-founder and CEO Jonathan Klein, will also invest significant equity in the company, officials said in a statement.

Carlyle Partners V, a $13.7 billion U.S. buyout fund, will provide equity financing for the investment. J.P. Morgan, Barclays, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and RBC Capital Markets have provided committed debt financing for the transaction. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close in 2012.